17. Jaxson
CHAPTER 17
Jaxson
T he amount of anger I feel knowing Chad ever put his hands on Margot far surpasses everything I have ever felt.
I want to hunt him down.
Make him hurt.
Even as I know vengeance is not mine.
So I take a deep breath and drive the conversation in another direction, all while silently vowing to always protect this woman and her son. I steal a glance at her now, looking absolutely gorgeous despite the bruises on her face and the stress she’s under.
How does she manage to look so put together when I feel like I’m falling apart?
“So, you know a lot about me and my family,” Margot says, then takes a bite of her bread. Does she know how stunning she looks? Even sitting here in sweats and a baggy T-shirt, she looks just as gorgeous as she did in that sunflower dress, covered in water, flustered and frustrated. “Can you tell me about yours?”
Her question is like a bucket of cold water. “It’s not a great story,” I reply honestly. “My mom never really wanted my brother and I, so after my drunken father bailed on us, she drove us to a homeless shelter and left us.”
Margot’s expression turns horrified. “She did what? Are you serious? That’s horrible!”
“It was,” I agree. “I managed to keep my brother and I out of the system by working odd jobs and stealing food when we had no money to afford it. We ate leftover scraps from restaurant kitchens and slept wherever we could find a place.”
“Jaxson.”
The way she says my name soothes a bit of the pain that has followed me all of my life. That feeling of being unwanted, the feeling that Rosalie only cemented by leaving me. For a long time, I didn’t understand why I was so unlovable. What was so wrong with me. I can’t even count the number of times I laid in a dark alley, holding onto my brother to keep him warm, while silently sobbing. “We survived. My brother is married now with a baby on the way. He has a good, steady job, and managed to get into college. It all worked out.”
“But at what sacrifice?” She reaches across the table and covers my hand the same way I covered hers. “I am so sorry you went through that.”
I swallow hard, then turn my hand to hold hers. It just feels so right. Like this woman was made for me, and I for her. Like I was born to love her. To protect her. To cherish her. “It all turned out okay. And it took me a long time to realize that I wasn’t alone. Even when I thought I was.”
“You have always been perfectly loved,” she replies.
“Which was a great thing to realize for a man who felt unlovable.”
“You’re not unlovable,” she says quickly, her gaze holding mine. “You just didn’t find the right person.”
“Neither did you,” I reply.
I could lean around the table and kiss her. It’s small enough that it would take very little effort to touch my lips to hers. And I want to so badly. I’m desperate to know what her mouth would feel like on mine.
Is this the woman? The one I was always supposed to find?
An alarm shrieks, pulling us apart. I jump to my feet, then reach behind me and close my hand to the firearm at my back. “What is that?”
“Fire alarm.” Her eyes widen, and she sprints out into the B&B.
Pajama-clad, sleepy-eyed people are already rushing down the stairs.
“Everyone outside, please! Be safe, move carefully!” she orders as she dials 9-1-1 on the front desk phone. “Oh, what is happening now?”
I open the door and help everyone file out, all while keeping my attention on making sure Margot remains safe.
“How many are outside?” she asks .
“Six,” I tell her.
“Six.” Her eyes widen. “There’s still a couple upstairs. They’re elderly, have hearing aids. They may not have woken up.” She turns and heads for the stairs, but I grip her arm.
“I’ll get them. Go outside and make sure everyone is fine.”
“Jaxson—”
“Go.” I head upstairs, and by the time I get to the top, I see smoke billowing out from the door of one of the rooms. Since I don’t know what room they’re in, I slam my boot into the door, splintering it open.
Smoke fills my lungs, and I cover my mouth with my arm as my eyes burn. Flames climb up the far wall, but the bed looks made, so I rush further down the hall to the only other closed door.
Knowing that if they didn’t hear the alarm, they won’t hear me knocking, I kick the door open, then stumble inside. Smoke follows me in, and I rush forward as a groggy elderly man sits up and moves between me and his wife.
I point behind me. “There’s a fire!” I yell.
He reaches up to his ear and presses something.
“Fire!” I yell again.
His eyes widen, and he rushes out of bed and grabs his wife’s robe.
“What’s happening?” she asks after turning her hearing aid on.
“There’s a fire, Midge, we have to go. ”
She stands, then sways on her feet.
I don’t hesitate as I scoop her up, knowing that it won’t be long before the fire spreads out of the room. Especially since I kicked the door open in my search for them. “I’ll carry you down. Leave your things, the fire department is on their way. Cover your mouth and nose with something.”
She uses the sleeve of her robe, and he grabs a throw blanket, then follows me out into the hall. The smoke is so thick it burns my eyes and throat. Since I’m carrying her, I can’t cover my nose, so I do my best to hold my breath as I rush down the stairs, her husband behind me.
The moment we’re out in the fresh air, I draw in a heavy breath and set her down.
“Thank you. Thank you,” the husband says as he wraps an arm around her.
I nod, then cough as I try to take another deep breath.
Margot rushes to my side. “Are you okay?”
I nod again, trying to stifle my coughing. But as I straighten, I see a shadow move around the back of the house. “Stay here. Stay with everyone.”
“What? Where are you going?”
I don’t answer, just reach behind and grip my firearm, then rush around the side of the house as fast as I can move, given the smoke I inhaled.
The shadow keeps running. “Wait! Stop!” I keep running after whoever it is, knowing in my gut they had something to do with this fire. Flames like that don’t just happen .
The person leaps over a fence, then sprints across the street and disappears into the tree line. I jump over, determined to catch them, and then—someone lays on a horn and tires screech. I leap back just in time to avoid being smashed by a passing car.
They continue driving, and I start toward the trees as soon as they’ve passed, though I know without a doubt the person I was chasing got away.
This time.
“Accelerant was used,” Fire Chief Peter Paulson says as he crosses over to where Margot and I are standing just outside the B&B. Pastor Redding came a few hours ago and picked up all of the guests, and he, Doc, Lance, and Mrs. McGinley took in all four couples, allowing them to stay in their spare bedrooms.
Thankfully, no one was hurt.
“So it was arson.” I cross my arms. Since I shared that someone ran from the scene with Margot, she’s not surprised either.
“That’s what I’m leaning toward. Any idea who could have done it?”
“I don’t have cameras inside the B&B for the privacy of my guests, and no one was staying in that room.” She looks about one bad news delivery from falling over, so I wrap an arm around her shoulders to steady her .
I do it without thinking, and I’m grateful when she leans into me rather than pulling away.
“The window was open, and since you said you just opened the door—” Paulson trails off.
“I didn’t touch the window,” I reply.
“It was closed,” Margot confirms. “When I went in there and cleaned this afternoon after checkout, I made sure it was closed and locked. I always do.”
"Someone must have gotten in, then climbed out that way after starting the fire. Any idea who it could be?”
“Chad is the first one who comes to mind,” she growls. “But I’d be surprised if he were that stupid.”
“You’d be surprised what people will do when they feel cornered.” Peter writes something on his notepad. “We all went to school together, and I remember what a hothead he was.”
“But burning down the B&B?” She shakes her head. “That seems like a lot.”
“You were run off the road by a strange car, and now your B&B is hit? Chad has the most to gain over hurting you. We’ll look into him, and I’ll be sure to pass this information on to Sherriff Vick.” He looks at me. “Can you give me a description of the person you saw running away?”
“Sure. It was dark, though, so I didn’t get as good of a look as I would have hoped. They were fast, managed to jump over the fence without hesitation. Whoever it was wore a black hoodie, a mask, and dark pants. But that’s all I’ve got. I’m sorry. Elijah is checking security footage now, seeing if we caught him on the exterior cameras. ”
“Great. You’ll let me know?” he asks.
“Sure thing.”
“Awesome. Give it a couple more hours before you go inside,” he tells Margot. “There’s substantial damage to the upstairs, and we need to make sure it’s sound before you go in.”
“Substantial damage?” Margot chokes on the words. “How substantial? Will I be able to reopen soon?”
Peter hesitates. Just long enough that I can imagine he’s trying to pull the punch as much as he can. “It’s bad, Margot. But we’ll get it figured out, okay?” Peter gently taps her on the shoulder, then turns and leaves.
“Substantial damage,” she chokes out. “Jaxson, I was barely making it before. I owe you money. What am I going to do? This is my only income.”
I turn her to face me. “We’ll get it figured out, okay? Don’t worry about me. I’m okay. I don’t need the money.”
“It’s your money.”
She’s spiraling. I run my thumbs over her cheeks. “Why don’t we head over to Michael and Reyna’s? They said to come over when we’re done here, and they’ll have some food ready. Let’s get you something to eat, then we can start figuring out the rest.”
She begins to cry and covers her face with both hands as her shoulders shake. “I’m so sorry, Jaxson. I?—”
“Don’t apologize.” Wrapping both arms around her, I draw her in against my chest and hold her tightly as she cries.
My cell rings, and I ignore it. But then it rings a second time, and Margot pulls away. “Answer it, please. I’ll be okay.” She forces a smile, her eyes red.
I withdraw my cell, and not recognizing the number, press it to my ear. “Payne.”
“Jaxson?” The woman on the other line sniffles. “Is that you?”
“Lanetti?”
Margot’s eyes go wide.
“He found me again.”
“Where are you?” I demand.
“You said you would keep me safe,” she sobs.
“Tell me where you are!” I roar into the phone.
She cries out as though she’s been struck. “He—he said I could call you.” Her voice cracks. “He said to tell you something.”
“Where are you? Who said to tell me something?”
“Roses are red, violets are blue, wherever I go, you’re coming too. By the seashore. By the seaside. I’ll be forgotten, swept away by the tide.” She chokes on a sob. “Jaxson, please—” The call ends, and I stare down at my phone, fear and anger churning in my gut.
He’s toying with me.
I’d be willing to bet he let her go to give us all a false sense of security.
A win so we’d play his game harder.
And now he’s giving me the chance to find Lanetti—even when we both know she’ll likely be dead long before I do.